Veg Out Your Slow Cooker

More by
Cecily

On behalf of exhausted parents everywhere, the inventor of the slow cooker deserves a medal. (That would be Irving Naxon, in 1971. Well done, Irving!) This appliance works magic with tough cuts of meat in particular. And there’s the rub. Often, recipes for the slow cooker are meat-heavy, or just heavy in general.

It doesn’t have to be this way, though. The slow cooker can coax out the best flavor from veggies, too, with a few ground rules. To get started, take your favorite slow cooker recipe and think about which vegetables would taste good with it. Then, either swap out some of the meat or simply add more produce. It’s frugal, healthy, and delicious! Here are a few tips about what to add and when to add it.

Pick wisely. This almost goes without saying, but choose your veggies carefully. Delicate ones, or ones with a high water content (I’m looking at you, zucchini), tend to turn soggy in the slow cooker. Butternut squash, potatoes, carrots, and eggplant are all good candidates. For inspiration, check out this super-delicious slow-cooked ratatouille recipe.

Make the cut. This is true of all cooking methods, but particularly true of slow-cooking: Be sure everything is cut the same size, so it cooks at the same rate. Otherwise, you might end up with tiny, soggy cubes of potato and giant, crunchy ones. No fun at all.

Freshen up. Seasonings are your friend. Because vegetables don’t offer copious amounts of fat the way meat does, herbs, spices, salt, and pepper heighten the flavor. Mix up a custom spice blend or use one of the many commercial blends available.

Get some color.Yes, browning adds one more step, but it’s worth the trouble. Season your vegetables, get a large skillet good and hot, add a little oil, and toss them in, working in batches. Deglaze with a little liquid, like wine, broth, or even water, stirring to incorporate any browned bits, and pour it all in the skillet.

Timing is everything. Remember, you don’t have to add everything to the slow cooker at once. If you are cooking a large piece of meat, add vegetables later so they stay fresh. Peas brighten up a beef stew, for example, while you can toss shredded red cabbage into a braised pork dish.